There's That Word Again
by transslayer
Summary: One girl in all the world, because a bunch of old men who died thousands of years ago made up that rule. A new potential slayer is in town who happens to be transgender. How does this impact the defensiveness and weird mixed signals between the Chosen Two? Set during Season 7 Dirty Girls- Chosen.
1. Chapter 1

"Do we really need to talk about this now?!" Buffy yelled while she dodged a swift punch from a particularly nasty demon covered in puss-pods.

"Yes! How many times are you going to try and get out of talking to me? We need to get things out, B." Faith quickly staked one of the vampires in league with the puss-pod demon and moved to tackle the other vamp, literally.

"Fine! As soon as we kill these guys we can talk all you want. Gross!" Buffy just popped one of the puss-pods on the demon she was battling. This resulted in her new white sweater to be covered in green goo. _Ugh, I just bought this! I guess that's what I get thinking I can be a slayer and own anything white_.

Buffy and Faith moved in sync to slay both the puss-pod demon and the remaining vampire. Faith was dusting off her shoulders when she couldn't help but laugh at the sight of Buffy. She was completely covered in that green goop.

"Shut up, Faith!" Buffy spat at her, some green goo being spat as well.

"Ha-ha, whatever B, you were _all_ about taking out that demon. "

"Yeah I know" _Damnit and now I have to talk about all this crap with Faith covered in green gross? Can't things in my life ever be easy?_

Just as Buffy was opening her mouth to hurry Faith into talking, Willow pulled up to the cemetery in Xander's car. This couldn't be for anything good.

"Willow, what's wrong? Is everyone okay? "Buffy knew that worried look of Willow's all too well.

"Yeah, uh, I mean no, I mean, we're all safe, but the Coven just called. There's another potential on her way. We're lucky the Coven picked up on her coming. We don't have much time her bus should be here very soon." Willow said this in one breath, hoping she didn't catch the blond slayer in one of her bad moods. They were common when she was around Faith too much. "Why are you covered in goo?" she added, finally seeing the blond slayer.

Buffy sighed with a mixture of tiredness and relief. She knew she and Faith would have to talk eventually, but she was glad it wasn't now, especially being covered in goop.

"Long story, Will."

"Puss-pod demon" Faith interjected.

"Oh, well I guess it's a relatively short story. But could you use some magic mojo to clean me up and then we'll get the potential. She's probably scared on her own."

"Uh, yeah, of course," Willow said distractedly. It was hard not to feel the tension between the two slayers in front of her. Was fighting this demon really that bad?

With some mumbled Latin and a rev of the car engine, a green goo free Buffy and Willow were on their way to fetch the new potential down at the bus station.

They pulled up to station just as the expected bus was letting off its passengers. Buffy exited the car once she saw a young girl on her own around 17 years old. _She looks almost too innocent to be a potential. I wonder if I seemed that way when I was one, too._

Shaking the thought from her head, Buffy walked up to the young girl and introduced herself. "Hi, I'm Buffy. You can come with us, you'll be safe now." Buffy couldn't count the amount of times she said this to the potentials when they first arrived. It always felt a little bit like a lie somehow.

"Um, I think you're looking for someone else. " The girl retorted looking thoroughly confused and a little nervous.

"Aren't you the potential? Here, all alone, innocent in Sunnydale?" Buffy blurted out. The girl looked offended now.

"I'm waiting for my next bus to LA, thank you. This shithole of a town is just a pit stop." The girl turned on her heel and walked into the station to wait safely under the fluorescent lights.

_Whoops. Whatever, I'm glad she's not the potential. What a cu—_

"Buffy! Over here! I found her—uh the potential." Buffy heard Willow's voice cry from across the parking lot.

Buffy walked back up to the car to see Willow standing next to a young guy. He was just about the same height as Willow, a little shorter. He was very broad around the shoulders, a kind of a construction worker's build to him. He looked young, maybe barely 17 with a small patch of thick brown hair under his chin and long, medium-width sideburns to match.

Ignoring the boy next to Willow, Buffy turned to her and said, "Does this guy have information on where our girl is?" The boy cringed when Buffy had said girl. She wasn't sure why and just brushed it off.

"Buffy, this is Easton. Our new potential slayer." Willow's eyes darted between Buffy and Easton nervously as Easton extended his right arm to shake hands with Buffy.

"Hi, it's so great to meet you. I've heard so many stories about you from my mom when I was younger. She was a potential too, but never got called." The boy said this all quickly as though afraid he'd be cut off in the middle of his sentence. His voice also cracked quite a bit for a 17 year old. Could he be even younger then she originally thought, Buffy wondered.

"What? How are you a potential, you're a boy. A rather androgynous looking boy, but a boy nonetheless."

"Uh, Buff, Easton here is a potential, he's just uh—"

"I was born female." Easton announced abruptly, but as casually as one would say they had blue eyes. "I'm a FTM guy, female-to-male, transgender, genderqueer, b-o-i, anything ringing a bell?" Easton stood there anxiously awaiting word from Buffy on whether or not she believed him.

Willow decided to help the process of explaining along so they could get back to the house. She was the L in the LGBT sandwich after all.

"Uh, so when the original watchers made the original slayer, they didn't have any way of knowing about trans* folk, so when they said girl, they really meant a person born female. So that's how Easton here is a potential, because he was born female. I'm honestly surprised it took this long to have a potential be trans*."

Buffy sensed Willow beginning to babble and cut her off, "So Easton, you're transgender. Making more sense. How about you fill me in more about you once we get back to the house? It's dark, and I'm sure boy or girl or whatever, you're probably tired and hungry. I know I am."

With this, Buffy opened the car door for Easton, waited till he was in, duffle bag and all then climbed into the front seat herself.

"Let's motor, Will. We got some stuff to figure out at home."

_I hope Faith won't try to bombard me with the talking when we get back. I so cannot deal with that right now._

Buffy, Willow, and Easton pulled up to Slayer Central fifteen minutes later. The car ride was mostly silent with a few break outs of Willow's signature babbling that helped get some background information on the newest potential. Easton was originally from Chicago and went to an all-girl Catholic for 11 years. He was actually closer to Buffy and Willow's age, just shy of 21.

"So here we are: Slayer Central. Come on, Easton, let's get you settled." Buffy said this as she opened the front door, showing him the way to the living room. She made to follow him when Willow whispered in her ear, "The girls are going to go crazy over this boy. I hope he's prepared."

_The next night…_

"Buffy this is huge."

"I know."

"This, this is bigger than the biggest Big Bad! This is bad…is it bad?" Willow questioned her friend as she paced around the headstone Buffy was sitting on. Buffy heaved a sigh, "I don't know, Will. Maybe? But, maybe not? Oh, god, I wish things could just be easy, especially with another apocalypse coming."

"Apparently that's not the only thing that's been coming." Willow murmured just loud enough for Buffy to hear her.

"Hey!"

"Sorry, Buff. It's just…this is—"

"Huge, I know. You said it about a thousand—"

"_Faith_." Buffy shifted in her tombstone seat. "You slept with Faith, Buffy. It's—"

"HUGE. Gigantic. Monstrous. I know, Willow."

"Well, yeah, but it's Faith we're talking about? Former Mayor of 'Get-Some-Get-Gone' Town. Operative word being "former" here, Buff." The two were silent for a moment until Willow spoke up again.

"Do you think she has feelings for you?" Willow's eyes bored into Buffy's as if she was trying to read the slayer's mind rather than hear what she had to say about it. Buffy looked away quickly as she slid off the headstone. "I don't know, Will. Maybe? Oh, who am I kidding I'm sure she feels something."

"How do you know?" Willow's brow furrowed in concern of hearing what she already knew about the Dark Slayer.

"Well, she wants to talk to me about what happened for starters, but I've been avoiding her." Willow rolled her eyes at this giving Buffy a 'Biggest Duh of the Year' look. "Okay, I know Major Buffy is also Captain Obvious…but Willow…what's more is," Buffy took a quick breath. "What's more is... I can _feel_ it."

"Feel what?"

"I can feel how she feels, _what_ she feels…about me." Buffy stared at the ground unable to look her best friend in the face. After a few moments, Willow blinks herself back to earth.

"Uh, whoa. So Buffy, you're saying you _know_ Faith has feelings for you? _Feeling_ feelings? And you feel these feelings too? Like sense them, I mean? Whoa…is this a slayer thing?" Willow started fidgeted with her hands in a manner that can only be described as "Willow-y".

"Yeah… I think so…" Buffy said narrowly eyeing Willow's twisting fingers slowly. "…but I think it's also because, I feel" Buffy inhaled deeply. "The same way." She let her breath leave her body slowly and she felt lighter. She never knew how heavy a weight having feelings for Faith really was. And she had carried this for years.

"Oh."

_Back at Slayer Central_

Easton found himself oddly alone in the Summers' kitchen. He wanted to search for food, but he felt like that would be extremely rude, even if this was his new home. He was just about to strike up the nerve to open the fridge to check for at least some milk when someone walked in behind him.

"Who the hell are you?" It was a girl's voice, but around here, that didn't give much of a hint to the speaker. Embarrassed, Easton spun around locking eyes with the woman who spoke. _I shoulda fuckin' known._ Easton visibly relaxed as he stepped toward the dark haired woman.

"Kennedy after all these fucking years and you don't recognize me?" Easton questioned, knowing that of course she couldn't tell who he was. After Kennedy just stared blankly at him, Easton decided to fold.

"You, me, St. Bernadine's. Man, Sr. Michelle hated our fucking _guts_." Grinning widely, Easton watched as comprehension hit the potential.

"Holy fuckin' shit bro! What the fuck!" Kennedy ran to Easton shoving him in the chest so hard he hit the fridge behind him. "Dude, tell me everything! You're a guy now? What happened to Dykes 'til Death, man? Holy shit," she laughed slapping Easton playfully on the shoulder again. "Did you come here looking for me? We haven't heard from you in years, B. What happened to you, other than the dudebro shit."

Easton cringed at Kennedy's use of his old nickname from his female past. "Oh, you know, shit with my mom got really real so I had to spilt." Kennedy gripped Easton's hand knowingly at this. "And, then once I was on my own for a bit, I was bouncing around the country discovering myself and shit. Woke up and realized, _fuck_, _I'm dude_. It all kinda clicked and fell into place then. I've been on T, uh, testosterone for about a year now and I go by Easton."

"Holy shit that's great, you sound great like seriously. I hardly recognized you." Kennedy embraced Easton. "Ha, yeah I figured that by you saying "Who the hell are you?' It's good to see you, Kenn." The two remained hugging for a few moments. Just then the back door opened and Buffy and Willow walked in from their patrol together.

"You have to tell me everything that happened between you and—" Willow cut herself short seeing her girlfriend hugging the newest potential. She tried to compose herself quickly. "Uh, glad to see you're getting to know everybody, Easton." Willow became fidgety as Buffy had on the biggest "uh oh" face ever.

"Hey Willow," Kennedy rushed over to kiss her Wicca girlfriend, "B, er, I mean, Easton and I go way back."

"Yeah, buddy," Easton laughed as he high-fived Kennedy. "Partners in crime at St. Bernadine's for six years."

"I'll fill you in more upstairs, cutie," the potential said to Willow, "but for now," Kennedy turned back to Easton, "I wanna know what you're doing here." She awaited an answer that Buffy surprisingly supplied.

"Easton here is our newest potential recruit. Willow can explain this better than—"

"Oh, it's because she," Kennedy corrected her pronoun without skipping a beat, "he was born female and the ancient blah blahs didn't know about transgender people. Got it." Kennedy filled in.

_Does everybody understand this better than me? Am I some kind of bad ally? Hell, can I even call myself an ally when I'm off having sex with—_

"Earth to B?" Buffy hadn't realized it but Faith had joined the kitchen party. Easton instinctively twitched in Faith's direction at the mention of his former nickname. It was a habit he hoped to eventually break.

"What?" Buffy said slightly annoyed when she noticed everyone staring at her.

"Faith mentioned pizza, want in?"

"Uh, no. I should go check on the other potentials, but you guys have fun."

"Party pooper" Willow mumbled under her breath. She had to admit that she wanted to really watch how Buffy and Faith interacted with each other now. Looking back on it, it was so obvious, how she had not noticed the energy between Faith and Buffy was beyond her.


	2. Chapter 2

"We need to start arming the girls. I want to be ready to move when we find him." Buffy addressed the Scooby Gang that was crowded in her bedroom.

Willow, ever the worrier, could not hold back, "We don't even know where we're going!" She hoped her best friend would come to her senses instead of leading a bunch of potential slayers, one of which happened to her new girlfriend, into the fray with Pastor I-Hate-Women.

"That's why we've got to do a little recon. You up for it?" Buffy directed her question to Faith. _Maybe this time we can do the not talking. Oh god, dirty Buffy brain! Not _that_ kind of not talking!_

"Point me where you want me," Faith answers toning down her usually oozing sexual appeal. She didn't want to spook Buffy into not being alone with her again.

Willow shifted uncomfortably as Buffy and Giles began to fight, again. Ever since Giles tried to kill someone, okay that someone being Spike, Buffy got all bent out of shape with him. _I mean, c'mon, who hasn't tried to kill someone, or succeeded in this group we have here. _The Wiccan's inner monologues had a point. Everyone in the room had killed someone, some of them more than one someone, but for some reason only two in the room really got under her skin. _Buffy's never been this mad about an attempted killing since, well, since Faith. Huh. Is the connection because Giles and Faith both tried to kill her vampire sex bunnies, or because Giles and Faith mean something more to her?_

Buffy was not pleased with her Watcher undermining her decision. It was time to go, "Help the girls her still need a teacher." She said, packing a final emotional punch as she walked out of the bedroom, beckoning Faith to follow.

In the woods of Sunnydale, because Sunnydale has woods, Buffy and Faith track a Bringer, to Faith's amusement.

"No eyes but look at him go. He got sonar or something?" Faith was trying desperately to strike up some form of conversation between her and the blond slayer. _Same shit, different year. It's always been hard to get B to talk, but at least back then I knew it was cuz she was focused on her super honey with the giant forehead. Now…what she's thinking about is anyone's guess._

"Or something, I guess. They're pretty good when they attack."

Another awkwardly pregnant pause fell between the slayers. Faith again tries to get Buffy to speak, about anything.

"It's a tough sitch you got here, training a bunch of girls into an army." Great. Talking about work with Buffy was about as lame as talking about the weather. Faith was about to try another approach when Buffy interrupted her.

"Why did you come back?" She sounded accusing, staring the brunette slayer hard in the face, her eyes more tired looking than ever. Faith showed a look of fear in her eyes for only a moment before she put up her usual wall of protection from the other slayer. _Because I wanna be with you_, Faith thought in her head. Faith went on the defensive instead.

"Willow said you needed me. Didn't give it a lot of thought. Do you…Am I getting you want me to be not here?"

At this, Buffy hung her head. _It's always defensiveness crap with her, not that I blame her for some of it. Okay, I blame her for a lot, but that was then, this is now. I do need her…I just can't work out in what ways._

"That's not what I meant. I'm glad that you're here. It's good. Thank you."

"No problem." The two fall silent again, tracking the wanted-to-be-found Bringer.

"Buffy, about the other night…" Faith begins, but is interrupted again by the smaller slayer.

"Look, there's more of them. Let's get the cavalry."

POV Easton

S_tuck behind at Slayer Central_. I sit on the back deck smoking my Camel Blues. _It's probably for the best._ I exhale slowly. I don't think I'd be much help except for some oh, so manly yelling in terror. I'm not the only one left behind though; lots of other newbies are here. Kenn got sent out though; I hope she stays safe the hotheaded chick. She really hasn't changed since high school, still bratty, but in a lovable way I guess, ha. Jesus, there goes my stomach again. I swear if I ever get called to be a slayer, I'll never be done eating. It's bad enough with this synthetic testosterone running through my body.

I nip back in the house through the back door leading directly to the kitchen. I hope they have something cheesy, and lots of bacon. As my mouth begins to water, I open the fridge to start my search of grub. All of a sudden I feel a light hand on my left shoulder. I jump back a foot and yell, "Jesus fucking Christ," my heart is pounding, nothing like staying on your toes at the Hellmouth. I turn and see Willow, Kenn's girl, standing behind me looking guilty.

"Oh, sorry, Easton, I didn't mean…uh sorry." She babbles sounding like she's out of breath. I shrug my shoulders letting her know it's fine; I'm just a nervous wreck sometimes. This predates being brought to Sunnydale for my safety.

"What, uh what're you doing, Easton?" The Wicca is nervous, but with a determined look on her face.

"Just looking for something to eat, you know me, always in the kitchen." I'm not great a making small talk, but I try my best. Willow seems cool and I don't need to come off like a complete ass.

"Oh, right, food, with the eating," she mumbles somewhat distractedly. I decide to throw her a bone.

"Uh, yeah, generally one does the eating with the food." Pause for awkward babies being born, "So…what's up?"

"You can see right through my ploy of small talk, huh?" the red head chuckled to herself.

"Yeah," Easton responds, giggling himself, "we'll go with that and not the I'm-the-most-awkward-person-on-the-planet option."

"Oh, I don't think you're awkward, Easton. It's just awkward us all being here, you know, waiting for the First the attack, er, not to scare you or anything."

"Ha, no worries. After living out on the street, nothing really scares me like that. Had to fight vamps just to be able to sleep ya know?"

"Oh, uh, no, I don't—you were homeless before you came here? Kennedy never said…" Willow trailed off lamely.

"No, not right before coming here, but after high school when I finally cut ties with my mom and all—Kennedy didn't really know about that. She was off at college and I just wanted to keep things simple in my life at the time. But I'm here now, alive, gotta be thankful for that!"

The two smiled at each other as another pregnant pause fell in their conversation. After a minute, and popping a meatball hot-pocket in the microwave, Easton spoke up again. "I never was with Kenn or anything, by the way."

Caught off guard, Willow blustered and quickly turned as red as her hair. "What—I, I didn't think…"

"It's cool, lots of people have thought that about us in the past, but no, nothing frisky between us, just kinda like chick-bros for us. Only except she's the only chick in our friendship ha."

"How did you know I wanted to ask about that?"

"You kinda had it written all over your face. No worries. Also, I can tell Kenn is super into you. You must be cool as shit for that to happen." At this Willow laughed and clapped Easton on the arm, glad the two seemingly were becoming fast friends.

As the microwave timer went off the house phone began ringing frantically off the hook.

"I should, uh, get that," Willow stated unnecessarily as she sprinted toward the phone.

"Yo, Red? We got a big sitch here. I'm on my way back with most the crew, but you need to get to the hospital as soon as I step foot in there. It's Xander."

Without saying a word, Willow hung up the phone her eyes completely black.


	3. Chapter 3

After Willow got Faith's call she rushed to the hospital to meet Buffy and a handful of potentials all being admitted for various injuries. The Wicca was happy to see her best friend and girlfriend were relatively unarmed, but she burst into tears the second she saw Xander lying in a hospital bed, one eye socket packed with gauze, unconscious.

Faith and Giles took over at the house, making sure all the potentials remained calm and went to bed. Giles arranged to have regular slayer sessions the following day to keep the team occupied. Willow and Buffy stayed behind with the injured for the night.

_The next day during slayer sessions…_

_**Tune: Hurt- Johnny Cash**_

Faith was sitting on the counter in the kitchen enjoying the silence and solitude as well as a family size bag of ridged potato chips. As she dug into the bottom of the bag leaving no salty crumbs behind, she heard the basement door open behind her. "Can I have some chips?" a self-assured girlish chirp floated to Faith's ear as she continued to stare out the window. She stiffened slightly, still not entirely used to being out of prison and around non-incarcerated people. Deciding to joke with the junior Slayer, she quipped, "I'll trade you for a carton of cigarettes." Hearing no laughter from the trust fund potential, Faith gave up on her joke. "Sorry, habit," she said as she jumped down from the counter.

"No problem, " Kennedy assured. "What were you staring at? The clouds?" Kennedy chuckled to herself.

Giving the smaller brunette a look up and down Faith answered, "No, that new kid's been out back with Giles' guitar for the past half hour. I'm tryin' to guess what he's playing."

Kennedy took this opportunity to follow Faith's eye-line to see her former boarding school buddy playing an acoustic guitar with his eyes closed in the Sunnydale sun.

"Man, I forgot he played. He takes that shit seriously, it's like a religion to him."

"You know him, right, I forgot. What's his deal? Red filled me in on the whole guy-but-a-potential sitch, but like who is he?" Faith questioned. Seeing the tormented look on the trans potential concerned Faith.

"Well, I haven't seen him since he was she. B and I go way back, but that was like over three years ago, at least." Faith turned her complete attention on Kennedy at the mention of Easton's former nickname, her current nickname for one blond slayer.

"B?"

"Yeah, that's what I used to call him. Short for Brittany. I don't think he'd mind me telling you this, but let's keep it on the DL. I guess I should call him "E" now. That seems easy enough," the potential mused to herself. Faith let out the breath she didn't realize she was holding in. Ignoring the dark slayer, Kennedy went to the window above the sink, opening it just enough to hear Easton's voice and soft acoustic strings on the light breeze.

_I hurt myself today_

_To see if I still feel_

_I focus on the pain_

_The only thing that's real_

_The needle tears a hole_

_The old familiar sting_

_Try to kill it all away_

_But I remember everything_

Faith and Kennedy turned to look at each other, slightly shaken by the pain they heard carry across the yard from the short frame of the Chicago potential. "He's been through some shit," Kennedy supplied as if she read Faith's mind.

"Yeah, I kinda see that…and hear it." They paused to listen to him continue his song from the man in black.

_What have I become_

_My sweetest friend?_

_Everyone I know_

_Goes away in the end_

_And you could have it all_

_My empire of dirt_

_I will let you done_

_I will make you hurt_

Faith made to go outside, but Kennedy stopped her. "Just wait until he's done. This is important for him. It's like a prayer to him."

"Okay, yeah. Tell me about him Kenn." Faith sensed that this wayward potential and she might have some thing in common. "Is he some rich kid like you?"

Kennedy looked like she might have laughed, but instead solemnly sighed, "No. No, he, uh, he was a scholarship kid. He had a lot of issues with his mom, things that I don't really feel comfortable talking about since it's his business, but yeah, he didn't come from a wealthy background at all. His parents were poor and just, brutal, no other way to put it." She paused to watch Easton sing, his face contorted either from pain or from the notes he was singing.

_I wear this crown of thorns_

_Upon my liar's chair_

_Full of broken thoughts_

_I cannot repair_

_Beneath the stains of time_

_The feelings disappear_

_You are someone else_

_I am still right here._

"He hasn't seen his parents since graduation he said, but he gets through it." She paused again watching Easton pick the guitar's metallic chords. "Why you interested?" she interrogated, narrowing her eyes slightly. "Just had a hunch," the older brunette muttered emotionlessly. Faith threw out the now empty bag of chips into the trash before heading out the door to the backyard, Kennedy trailing behind her.

_If I could start again_

_A million miles away_

_I would keep myself_

_I would find a way_

As Easton finished strumming the last chords, the Boston slayer called across the yard to Easton. "That's some sweet playing you did there." Obviously embarrassed, Easton's neck began to darken to scarlet as he mumbled, "Oh, um, you heard…uh, thanks." Catching sight of his high school best friend, he relaxed slightly. Kennedy punched Easton on the arm, harder than she would have normally, "Yeah, Easton, you always had some skill, but damn I'll say it again, testosterone treated you right."

The three stood there somewhat awkwardly for a moment, unsure of what to say to each other. Faith cut the silence feeling most at ease, "So Easton, what you been doing before Sunnydale? Kenn said you used to know each other back at boarding school?"

"Uh, yeah, mad long ago. I'm originally from Chicago. I got outta school before shit went down with my 'rents, which is the only reason I ended up here, I'm sure."

"I hear that," the Boston slayer stoically supplied. "What you do between high school and now, if you don't mind me asking." Faith was never usually the "get to know ya" type, maybe it was hearing his voice singing or maybe she had grown a soft spot while incarcerated, but she felt she needed to know this kid. _Maybe I should stop calling him "kid." We're the same age, I think_.

"I bounced around couches for a while, tried going to school, but it just didn't work. I found shelters for trans people in Chicago; they were great. Working, trying to stay out of prison."

Faith hardened at the word "prison." "Prison for what?"

"Being trans, being…poor," Easton sadly and simply delivered.

Faith nodded knowing not much about being trans, but knowing all too much about being poor. The trio all looked up as they heard the back door open, seeing the blond slayer standing in the doorway.

"You three, mind giving me a hand?" Buffy half asked, half commanded.

The three nodded their heads and started across the yard back into the house. Faith hung back for a moment pulling Easton back too.

"Hey, I know this is a weird sitch we're in here, probably a little weirder for you not knowing me, but if you wanna talk, I'm around, kay?" Easton nodded with a half smile as Faith clapped him on the back.

Buffy stood in the doorway waiting for them to enter and saw this exchange between the trans potential and the dark slayer. _Huh, who woulda thought Faith would get to know someone_.

The dining room table in the Summers' home was scattered with files Willow and Giles acquired from the Sunnydale PD that morning. "What are we looking for exactly?" Kennedy inquired picking up a small stack of papers closest to her taken chair.

"Not exactly sure. That's the thing. We're looking for anything which means check everything, got it?" Buffy never seemed to tire from ordering her troops, despite what the Boston slayer saw in the other girl's eyes. Kennedy and Easton nodded understanding Buffy's request and dove into the files before them.

Turning to Faith, Buffy murmured half to herself, "I'm going to go do some recon on what I've read." Seeing Faith about to open her mouth to offer backup, Buffy cut her off. "I want to go alone, thank you though. I'll be okay. See you guys later." The two potentials nodded looking up from their respective files. Faith gave the blond slayer a worried but confident look and then turned to pick up her own clutter of papers to look through.

Buffy went alone to the school. It was still daylight, so she expected to get some much-needed alone time, particularly to continue avoiding a certain dark slayer from Boston. _I'm being so childish. I am really that afraid of Faith?_ Buffy thought to herself for a second as she entered her former office. _Ugh, I'm afraid of the_ new_ Faith, the one that feels something. I've always known she's had those feelings, but now, now that she's all redemption-y, she wants to _tell_ me these things. I'm just not sure if I'm ready to hear them, let alone say anything back…even though I can't stop thinking about our night together, our _good _past together. _

Buffy busied herself by collecting stray pens and pencils from her abandoned desk. She attempted turning on the desktop computer in front of her, knowing full well it wouldn't spur to life in this forgotten high school. She sighed as she allowed her gaze to fall on the framed picture of her friends. Buffy, Xander, and Willow smiled back up at her innocently from seven years past. _I don't think we even had our first apocalypse yet here_, she thought to herself as she picked up the photograph. Many memories flooded Buffy's mind as she quickly recounted the number of times the world was near end; the number of times one of the three of them were responsible for the world coming to a near end.

Inhaling deeply, suppressing the tears that threatened to fall if she stayed a second longer, she put the picture in her bag and turned to collect other things she had left behind. Suddenly without warning she had knocked over the framed photograph she had of her mother on her desk, smashing the glass everywhere. "Goddamnit" she cursed to herself as she bent to collect the picture that had fallen from the frame. There was no point in cleaning up the broken glass in the already trashed building.

As she grabbed the photo of her mother, she noticed another photograph had fallen from the broken frame, laying face down on the ground amongst the mess. She reached for the picture noting the date "Christmas 1998" scribbled on the back.

_What could this be? I thought I only had the one picture in there_ Buffy pondered to herself.

She gasped aloud as she turned the picture over seeing herself with her arms wrapped around Faith, both of them smiling up at her in front of a Christmas tree.

"I forgot about this," Buffy whispered, breathing slowly as she traced her fingers over Faith's smile. Before she had time to stop them, tears were pouring quietly down her cheeks. _I wish we could have kept this. I wish things didn't have to happen the way they did. I've wanted her so badly since before this was taken. Can we even make it work now? _Using her sleeve to wipe away stray tears, Buffy stood up pocketing both pictures, the one of Joyce and of the two slayers.

"Why did things have to be so complicated?" she wondered aloud. To her horror, someone answered.

"Now, you slayer folk may have some issue with this, but I find if you open up your eyes and let in the light, things get a little less complicated." Caleb was standing on the other side of Buffy's desk, watching the slight blond slayer's face change dramatically from self-pitying sorrow to anger, even hate.

"Leave," Buffy growled through gritted teeth.

"I just wanna talk, don't go getting all womanly on me now," the former preacher smiled easily. "Actually," Caleb suddenly flipped Buffy's desk, sending it flying across the room, "I don't think I want to talk anymore." With the vicious uppercut, he caught Buffy's chin, throwing her through the glass window of her office. She hit the wall of lockers across the hallway and slumped in a heap, unconscious.


	4. Chapter 4

_Flashback- Faith's first night back_

"_I guess wanted wasn't entirely accurate," Faith joked, trying to relieve the tension she felt being back in the Summer's home after years of regret. Ignoring the sullen looks from Giles and Dawn, Buffy took Faith upstairs to show her where she'd be sleeping. Reaching their destination, Buffy lamely pointed at the sleeping bag on the floor of the blond slayer's bedroom._

"_Didn't know we'd be bunking together. You sure you're cool with that, B?" The blond looked over the dark slayer for a moment. Things could get weird, but Buffy was too tired to care at this point._

"_It's fine, Faith," she assured, "I'm beat and would love to unwind." Buffy rolled her neck cracking it several times in the process. Faith had a smirk planted on her face by the time Buffy eyes met hers again. "I got just the thing, B."_

_An hour and a half later the Chosen Two were tipsy and rounding the corner to intoxicated._

"_You know, I never realized how delicious tequila is. Thanks Faith," the blond slayer slurred slightly, wobbling on the ground where she sat across from Faith._

"_Ha, you know me, B, always finding that fun. Glad to see you're a bit looser than last time I saw you." Uh, oh. The touchy subject of the last time they say each other in person. Faith sitting in the police station confessing to murder moments after Buffy had told her how small she was, how awful._

"_Yeah, I've changed. I think you have too." Buffy said, taking in the woman in front of her. _This is certainly not the Faith I remember from high school. Still as dangerous looking, still as enticing, but harder, the kind of hardness that comes with…maturity?

"_Where'd you go, B? Thinkin' of all the good times past?" Faith questioned downing another shot of tequila with ease. Buffy frowned at this. She hated the past the two slayers shared. Everything was difficult between them for no reason. They were both young and stupid, and honestly that was all an understatement._

_Sighing, Buffy offered up an answer as Faith continued to look questioningly at the blond. "Yes and no," she couldn't help but be honest with this new Faith. Maybe Buffy was finally seeing the side of her she'd hoped for, or maybe the alcohol was hitting her harder than she realized. _

"_I just wish that, that, you know—"_

"_None of it ever happened? That we spent time braiding each other's hair and sharpening stakes at slumber parties instead of trying to kill each other?" Faith offered, passing the bottle to Buffy. Watching Buffy take another swig of the silver liquid, Faith spoke up again, "I wish that too. I wish a lot things, wish a lot of shit hadn't happened, you know?" She took the bottle back from the blond, "Man, my skin never stops crawling around you. Did you ever feel that? If things coulda been different, I wish..." Faith fell silent, choosing to take another drink from the bottle instead of finishing her sentence._

_Buffy knew exactly what the Boston girl was talking about. Her skin did crawl around her sister slayer; some of it she chalked up to a slayer connection, the rest of it, she wasn't sure she was ready to admit what it was. _

_Buffy looked up from her thoughts seeing the other girl staring at her. Faith's eyes looked sad despite the smirk she had on her face._

"_B, I, I never knew how to tell you this," Faith looked away and took another shot of liquid courage. "I, shit, I'm being such a chump right now. I think you're sexy as hell." She half-admitted finally, staring at any part of the room that wasn't near the blond slayer. Buffy laughed quietly smiling at Faith. "Yeah, I know Faith. We always were with the flirting back in high school, or did I remember that wrong?" _

_Faith laughed easily with the chosen one. Both could tell they were tiptoeing around the subject; that same subject being the reason behind their hatred towards each other. "Huh, so you definitely were flirting back then? Thought maybe it was in my head." She offered the bottle to the blond who took it willingly. _

"_Why would you think it was in your head?" the blond took a half sip and put the bottle on the carpeted floor between them screwing the cap on tightly._

"_Dunno, I mean, I thought about my time in Sunnydale, my time with you, a lot in prison, and I just thought maybe all that…that is was just hopeful thinking for my long incarceration." A silence fell between the two partially estranged slayers. Faith semi-consciously inched closer to Buffy, and the blonde's eyes scanned the younger slayer's body while she licked her lips._

"_You, uh, you thought about me in prison. Like none-hate-your-guts thoughts?" her voice was lower than normal, her throat tight. Thirsty, she grabbed the tequila bottle and took another nervous swig watching the brunette carefully, waiting for her answer._

"_Yeah," Faith answered, her voice deeper too. She bore her eyes into the blonde's hazel ones. "I told you, B," she moved even closer to Buffy, "I think you're sexy as hell."_

_Buffy's heart was beating fast, her mouth dry, her mind buzzing but fogged. She met Faith's gaze, blinking sheepishly for a moment, and before she could stop herself, "You're not so bad yourself, Fai." She huskily responded, and she too moved closer to the other slayer. Their knees were touching now, their faces closer than they had been in years. _

"_You know, B," Faith began, testing her courage; they had both left the alcohol on the floor forgotten. "You're even more beautiful now than ever…than what I remember from way back when." The brunette eyed the Chosen One's leg and placed her hand on it, rubbing gently. This completely clouded Buffy's mind, and she was taken over by the electricity she felt from the tips of Faith's fingers. _

_Without thinking, the two closed the distance them between, crushing their mouths together. Within seconds the kiss deepened and both slayers' hands began exploring each other. Buffy curled her fingers in the brunette's wild mane, bringing her closer than possible as they continued kissing fiercely. _

_Faith grabbed the blond slayer by the waist and lifted her into the air and onto the bed, never breaking the kiss. Faith straddled the other slayer's hips and ground her body into Buffy's. Buffy broke the kiss to move down Faith's neck, leaving hot red marks in her wake. Faith moaned in Buffy's ear. _

_Not daring to ask any questions or slow each other down, Buffy and Faith practically ripped each other's shirt and pants off, leaving them both stripped down to their bra and underwear. Faith took this moment to take Buffy in, looking over every inch of her body. She wanted to memorize the slight slayer in this moment. _

_Buffy reach up and pulled Faith down in another crushing kiss, and unhooked Faith's bra, tearing it off her and throwing it on the floor with the rest of the forgotten clothing. Faith followed suit. She started kissing down Buffy's neck and hovered over her exposed breasts. She captured a hard nipple between her lips and flicked it with her tongue sending Buffy's eyes rolling to the back of her head. It felt amazing. _

_Faith hurriedly kissed down Buffy's stomach needing to get a release; she could tell the blond needed that too. The dark slayer's kisses reached the band of Buffy's underwear and she pulled them down off her. Faith could not believe Buffy Summers was naked in bed with her. _

_Without any hesitation Faith seized the blonde's clit, sucking on it gently as Buffy moaned and bucked her hips slightly. Faith licked the length of Buffy's wet slit, sighing excitedly into the older woman's vulva. "God, you taste so good, B," she said before continuing to run her tongue in and out of the blond before her. _

_This drove Buffy insane and she could feel her orgasm building. "Oh, god," she whimpered into the pillow next to her. She ran her fingers through Faith's hair encouraging her to keep up her ministrations to her clit. _

_Suddenly, they felt the orgasm rip through both of them as Buffy came hard in Faith's mouth, pulling her hair to keep her tight on her clit. Faith moaned heavily into Buffy's exposed slit as she came intensely, feeling her wetness seep through her black underwear she still had on._

_Feeling the orgasm subside, Buffy pulled the brunette up to her to kiss her harshly, their night far from over._


End file.
